BREATHTAKING PLANETARIUM SHOW PASSPORT TO THE UNIVERSE OPENS AT THE DENVER MUSEUM OF NATURE & SCIENCE, MARCH 19
FIND OUT WHY YOU ARE “STAR STUFF,” MOVE MILLIONS OF LIGHT YEARS PER SECOND AND PLUNGE INTO A BLACK HOLE
NOTE: Press screenings will be held on Monday, March 8, and Tuesday, March 9, 2004 at 9 a.m. at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science. Please call the Public Relations office at 303-370-6384 to reserve a seat.
DENVER—March 4, 2004— Passport to the Universe, narrated by two-time Academy Award winner Tom Hanks, opens at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science's Gates Planetarium on Friday, March 19, 2004. The show—developed by the American Museum of Natural History in collaboration with the National Aeronautic and Space Administration (NASA)—helps people appreciate the true enormity of our universe. It treats audiences to an exhilarating flight through a three-dimensional map of our universe, into the Orion Nebula, out of our galaxy, and deep into intergalactic space.
Highlights:
- Travel through our solar system into space, watching the transition of our seemingly two-dimensional starry sky into three-dimensional interstellar space.
- Fly into the Orion Nebula, a stellar nursery where stars are born. Hanks, as narrator, urges the audience to take a deep breath. “Really,” he says. “Everybody, do it. Every atom of oxygen you just inhaled was made deep inside a star. The carbon in our muscles, the calcium in our bones, the iron in our blood—in fact, all the heavy elements—were cooked in the hearts of stars. As Carl Sagan said, ‘We are star stuff.'”
- Visit the Local Group of galaxies including Andromeda, in which our large Milky Way is only one of the galaxies.
- Pull out into the galaxy to witness the large scale structure of the universe where clusters of galaxies create web-like patterns.
- Jump into a black hole, taking an imaginary shortcut back from the edge of the visible universe.
Passport to the Universe is coauthored by Ann Druyan, a writer-producer and the late Carl Sagan's longtime collaborator, and AMNH astrophysicist Steven Soter. It is produced by Batwin and Robin of New York, and the soundtrack was composed by Stephen Endelman of New York. The National Center for Supercomputing Applications and the San Diego Supercomputer Center contributed significant computing and visualization support. AMNH scientists and science visualizers, with support from NASA, combined astronomical observations and state-of-the-art astrophysical computer models to create an unprecedented immersive journey. The show includes a spectacular fly through of the Orion Nebula based on observations from the Hubble Space Telescope.
More than 160,000 Museum visitors have experienced the new all-digital Gates Planetarium since it opened last June. Shows are projected on a perforated metal dome, 56 feet in diameter and tilted 25 degrees. Unidirectional, semi-reclining stadium seats help visitors experience a marvelous view—almost as if they're sitting on the tip of a rocket. An adrenaline-kicking surround-sound system adds to the out-of-this-world ambiance. In addition, assisted listening devices are available.
Museum Information
Background: The Denver Museum of Nature & Science is the Rocky Mountain Region's leading resource for informal science education. A variety of engaging exhibits, discussions and activities help Museum visitors celebrate and understand the natural wonders of Colorado , Earth and the universe.
Standard Hours of Operation, Ticket Pricing and Discounts: The Museum is open seven days a week, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (closed December 25). General Museum admission tickets are $9 each for adults and $6 each for juniors (ages 3-18) and seniors (65+). From 9 a.m.–4:30 p.m., tickets to Gates Planetarium must be purchased at the special combination price (Museum/Planetarium.) Planetarium-only tickets are available for the 5 p.m. show. Gates Planetarium tickets are $8 each for adults and $5.50 each for juniors and seniors. IMAX tickets are $8 each for adults and $5.50 each for juniors and seniors. Combination tickets and group discounts available. Call 303-322-7009 for more information, or check www.dmns.org .
Many of the Museum's educational programs and exhibits are made possible in part by generous funding from the citizens of the seven-county metro area through the Scientific & Cultural Facilities District.
IMAX is a registered trademark of Imax Corporation.
